


Grist for the Mill

by irena_adler



Series: Watson [35]
Category: Numb3rs
Genre: Coming Out, M/M, Rumors
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-08
Updated: 2017-10-08
Packaged: 2019-01-10 13:10:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12299796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/irena_adler/pseuds/irena_adler
Summary: Charlie deals with the FBI rumor mill.This takes place towards the end of "Looking for Love" and right after "Rumor Mill" and "That Old Mill Keeps Grinding."





	Grist for the Mill

**Title:** Grist for the Mill **  
Pairing:** Charlie/Colby, Megan, David, Don **  
Rating:** PG-13 **  
Summary:** Charlie deals with the FBI rumor mill. **  
Disclaimer:** Not my characters, not my world, making no money. **  
Feedback:** Yes, please! Feed the author!  
 **A/N:** This takes place towards the end of [Looking for Love](http://irena-adler.livejournal.com/16252.html) and right after [Rumor Mill](http://irena-adler.livejournal.com/34846.html).  Thanks to my beta.

 

Charlie leaned against the back wall of the elevator and tried to gather his courage.This was worse than the time his miscalculation had gotten Don shot, worse than when someone had shot up the office while he was there.Too soon, the elevator dinged and the doors slid open to the FBI office.

Taking a deep breath, Charlie stepped out of the doors.He walked slowly toward the desks, searching the room for Don.He met the interested gazes of other people and felt himself flush.His eyes quickly dropped to the floor in front of his feet and he navigated through the room by memory, mumbling apologies when he bumped someone.A pool of silence spread out around him as he walked, like a sort of virus which passed from person to person as each one noticed Charlie’s presence.Colby hadn’t been kidding when he’d warned Charlie about next time he came to the office …It had been hard for Charlie to believe that everyone here didn’t have more important things to worry about than his love life, but apparently they didn’t.

Charlie glanced up and found himself a few feet from Don’s desk.Congratulating himself on his memory, he looked around for Don.All he saw were people he knew vaguely - other FBI agents and office staff and technicians, and they were all watching him.

His face grew hotter, no doubt in the middle of the red spectrum by now, and Charlie looked frantically for one of his core team.He spotted them in the conference room and dashed across the office to the room.

He darted into the room and shut the door behind him.It was a pointless thing to do since the room’s walls were all glass, but it gave him some sense of safety.

The people in the room looked up in surprise.One glance at Charlie’s panicked face and another at the watching bullpen, and each one of his team grinned at him.

“Feeling a little conspicuous?”Megan laughed.

“Very,” Charlie groaned.

David, Colby and Don joined Megan in laughter.

“You’re gonna have to give them what they want …” Don said with undisguised glee.

“You betcha,” David agreed.

“You don’t have to enjoy this so much,” Charlie grumbled.

“Oh yes, I do,” Don responded.

“I’m afraid he does,” Colby said with an exaggerated sigh.“There’s nothing he likes better than embarrassing his genius brother.”

“Humph,” Charlie said, glancing behind him to see that, yes, everyone was still watching.

“How do you want to play this?” Colby said, looking more serious.And anxious.

Charlie frowned at Colby, realizing suddenly that while Charlie might be embarrassed now, Colby had been forced to live with the rumors for days.He could have simply told his co-workers that he was Charlie’s boyfriend but he hadn’t wanted to push Charlie.Charlie was impressed that Colby had managed to keep their secret.Charlie would have blurted it all out at the first sign of pressure.He’d only kept the secret for as long as he did since no one had suspected.

It had only been two days since Charlie’d told his father about him and Colby.Alan had turned out to already know, but Charlie had learned that only after a day-long stomach ache, partially caused by a nerve-induced lemon meringue pie binge.Now he was going to have to tell the entire office, and therefore the entire world.He held onto the glass door like a shield against the world's eyes.

Charlie’s abrupt arrival had obviously interrupted Don writing on the whiteboard while his team sat in chairs nearby.Now Don was leaning against the whiteboard, still smiling, but with understanding and support versus amusement.David gave him a firm nod.Megan jerked her head slightly toward Colby several times, nodded and smiled encouragement.

Charlie met Colby’s eyes.Charlie was beginning to be able to read Colby like he’d never been able to read anyone.It was both comforting and frightening to sometimes be able to look into those green eyes and know exactly what Colby was thinking.It wasn’t like Colby was an open book, it was just a connection between him and Charlie.It was just love.

At the moment, Charlie could see that Colby was worried about how Charlie was going to react to the office’s interest.He was afraid that Charlie would just turn and bolt.Colby wanted to shout his relationship to the world, but he was willing to hide for as long as Charlie needed.This wasn’t just Charlie’s “coming out”, but Colby’s as well.It shamed Charlie that Colby was willing to put his career on the line for Charlie, go against a lifetime’s worth of resistance to his sexual orientation, just so he could openly be with Charlie.

Charlie smiled, let go of the door and strode across the room, straight toward Colby.Colby started to stand up, but Charlie pushed him gently back into the chair and, without a pause, climbed into his lap.He took Colby’s astonished face between his hands and crushed his mouth to Colby’s.

A startled din exploded in the bullpen outside and the others in the room began to laugh with delight.

Colby jerked away and stared up at Charlie, his green eyes wide.Then he pulled Charlie’s lips back down and wrapped his arms around him, kissing him with relieved abandon.

After a long kiss which heated up all parts of Charlie’s anatomy, Charlie pulled back.He grinned down at Colby.“I think that should set some rumors to rest.”

“Hell, yeah,” Colby said breathlessly.

Charlie wondered if he had the same goofy grin on his face that Colby did. _Probably …_ “Hey, Don, Colby needs the rest of the day off.” __

“He gets an hour for lunch,” Don said with a laugh.

“Make that a two hour lunch,” Charlie said, “and I’ll help you on that problem you called me about.”

“Blackmail, Chuck?”Don said cheerfully.“Two hours, but no more.”

“You got it, boss,” Colby said and reached up to pull Charlie down for another kiss.

“Out, out!” Megan said, chuckling.

“Yeah,” David said.“Be kind to us single guys!”

Charlie fended off Colby’s kiss and looked over at the rest of his team.“Thanks, guys, for … you know … understanding.”

Megan and David nodded and smiled.

Don grinned and pushed himself away from the whiteboard.“Now, I gotta go claim my money from Jackson.”

Everyone stared at him.

“Hey,” Don said with an impish grin, “No one said I couldn’t bet in the pool!"


End file.
